Artisans

Blue Moon works directly with hundreds of artisans in developing countries. We build long term relationships and often work together with the artists in creating new designs.
	Sirikit Sirikit is a member of the White Lotus Women's Group in Northern Thailand. The Project aims to prevent the exploitation of village women and children by providing them with a viable village-based income from the production and sale of paper products.
	Wayan Kunci Wayan is a master wood carver. After many years of apprenticeship at his uncle's workshop he started his own micro-enterprise to provide for his growing family.
	Ida Putri I was born in a high-caste Brahmin family. But having married a man of lower caste, my family, as is the tradition, disowned me. In order to put food on the table I started making wooden windchimes and mobiles with my husband's help. Today we depend on Blue Moon orders for our livelihood and are very grateful to the people who buy the items made by us. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
	Women Potters Of Lombok The Sasak village women of Lombok have been producing pottery since the 16th century. Using very simple tools and materials gathered from the local countryside, the women potters work in their homes to create earthenware of great beauty and utility. Theirs is one of the oldest ways of making pottery, and Lombok is one of the few places in the world where it has survived. Even today, the women potters pass down their unique skills from mother to daughter.
	Mitra Bali Artisan Co-op Yayasan Mitra Bali a non-profit non-governmental foundation. It functions loosely as a cooperative of member producers with the objective of enabling its members to develop their products, market knowledge, facilities and working conditions in order to increase their competitiveness within the international market place.
	Dek Gus My love of working with mixed media has been the result of my original work with bamboo, which has been my focus for years. The great strength and the speed with which it grows to maturity make it the ideal source material for decorative and practical items. I use delicate young shoots of bamboo and similar plant material in order to add 3-rd dimension to my works. You could say I like to create hybrids - not a painting, exactly, but not a sculpture, either. A perfect fusion of both.
	I Wayan Pasek I have learned traditional woodcarving from my father when I was still very young. My father works for the local government, but he does not earn enough to provide for our family. So we always had to use woodcarving as the main source of income. I have studied English at the University of Denpasar, but now I work full time in my wood carving business.
	Ni Wayan Siti I live in the village of Penenstanan Kelod and have learned how to sew from a friend. After many years of saving I was able to but my own sewing machine and now I can work at home and look after my children at the same time. I get occasional orders for my pillows from local shops, but Blue Moon gives me the most steady work and the most help in creating new designs. I really depend on it!
	Nengah I have always enjoyed creating new designs, especially transforming the traditional motifs into modern look. I have learned to apply glass mosaic to ceramic platters that can be used for decoration.
	I Made Parta Native of Giyanyar regency in central Bali, Made has created art since childhood. 'I love making new designs, especially unusual combinations of shapes and colours, and using various media. I paint on wood, canvass, even ceramic pots. I tranform traditional masks and statues into abstract art. Creating art is the biggest passion of my life."
	Gusti Ayu Komang Living among the most beautiful vistas at the foot of the Kintamani volcano, Gusti Ayu uses abundant natural materials to fuel her creativity. Over the years she has worked with soft-wood, bamboo, agel grass and coconut palm leaf. She and her family make windchimes, bamboo trays and bamboo handbags. Her work reflects the beauty of their surroundings.
	Ni Made Lastri I started creating ornaments for the export market to supplement the traditional woodcarvings and today the ornaments are the bread and butter of my family. I am most happy when I'm working on new ideas, creating new desings and knowing that people who live very far away are enjoying them in their homes.
	Nyoman Parwata I started learning woodcarving while still at school. It's a family tradition. Wnen I got married I started my own family business in the village of Tampak Siring. I love applying my woodcarving skills to new ideas. In the beginning I was making colourful mobiles, but in the last few years I decided to be more creative and started designing modern jewelry; carving earrings and necklaces from local wood 'Sonokling'. I hope that my creations bring a lot of joy to the people who buy them!
	Wayan Warta Wayan Warta lives in the village of the most accomplished and renowned wood carvers and sculptors. His work reflects the centuries of tradition in it's excellence, but its subject is often quite modern. His tremendous talent creates beautiful and practical works of art.
	I Wayan Simplang Adnyana Early on in my life, I wasn't very interested in what I've accomplished today. My interest began after finishing my studies, when I left Bali and moved to the island of Lombok, where I lived with my uncle and his family. For a very long time Lombok has been recognized as the essential place of the earthenware industry. Day by day I watched people making earthenware products, inspiring me to learn the techniques. It is not as hard as some people might think, but it isn't very easy either. I love the final process, which is applying the glass pieces to create mosaic effect with different colors.
	I Dewa Gede Wiranata Wiranata is not only an artist, but a dynamic leader, who in few short years created a bustling successful industry that involves almost a whole village. Using the wealth of natural materials available in the countryside, they create a stunning collection of journals and photo albums that are 100% organic and eco-friendly.
	K. Subagia Woodcarving is a tradition in my family. I learned it while I was very young. It was part of the preparations for the Hindu ceremonies, as well as maintaining the temple carvings and statues. When I got married I opened my own small shop. My wife works in the shop and I do the carving. I'm happy to be able to use my talents.
	M. Sadru Made Sadru lives in the village of woodcarvers. His father and grandfather were woodcarvers. He continues the family tradition . His carvings are traditional in nature, drawing inspiration from the world of fauna and flora.
	Ibu Ayu Ibu Ayu lives in a rural village renown for weaving palm leaves into an amazing array of items. Storage baskets, market baskets, rice baskets and other household items. Her whole family of 3 daughters is involved in her successful enterprise. In recent years the young women decided to introduce a more modern product line, taking inspiration from the fashionable tourists visiting Bali. The result is a stunning combination of traditional skills and contemporary design.
	Ida Bagus Md Putra Born in a Brahmin family in a village high up in the volcanic hills of Bali, Ida Bagus follows the family tradition of many generations of carvers. Having set up a small shop he turned his creative energies to modern whimsical designs that are proving to be very popular. His wife manages the shop, while he does the creative work.
	Agung Satria I was born in a small village of traditional woodcarvers. I learned my craft from my father, who is a rice farmer and woodcarver. Few years ago there was an economic crisis and it became very difficult to survive. My uncle, who is a teacher, could not support his family on the teacher's salary and decided to open a small shop selling the woodcarvings made by our family. We were fortunate to have some designs of Christmas ornaments given to us by a Fair Trade company and that became our specialty.
	Gusti Putu Bagiarta Gusti Bagiarta is a multi-media artist. He works just as easily with wood as with wrought iron, often combining the two source materials. He lives in the city of Tabanan and his workshop employs many skilled artisans.
	Iluh Arini Iluh Arini is a woman combining traditional home-making and child-raising with managing a successful growing business. Iluh's husband, Semadi is a woodcarver who over the years developed his own line of mirrors and photo frames and delved into non-traditional source materials such as MDF. Iluh manages the shop and customer relations.
	Wayan Mentik I was born in Kintamani, a village on the slopes of the Batur Volcano. I learned sewing and patternmaking at my cousin's workshop. Few years ago I decided to open my own shop. My husband helps me with the sewing. I'm very happy when I get orders from Blue Moon, because they are always large orders.
	Gusti Mambo Born: March 4 1973 "I would like to introduce my self as a young, creative and innovative artist. My name is Gusti Mambo. As citizen of the world who accidentally was born in small village. In 1995 I encouraged my self to explore the new era of my spiritual and esthetical capacity. I dragged my feet to Ubud. I was amazed when first time I got here, drifting around Bedulu village. I adapted everything and improved all things that I need especially the new Experience with all the mystique surroundings." Concept: "For me to paint is to paint, nothing more ..."
	Nyoman Lingga Aksama Concept: I paint, whatever comes out of my heart. In my opinion, art is not simply material, colour, or media, and I don't want to be categorized. To be frank, I don't care much about technique. Art is whatever I feel, it's only a simple thing. Just like I breathe, I sleep, I walk or I dream. It is just my ordinary life. Even I have big dream, I have no target to be famous, rich, highly respected. I only paint, because I only have principle. Man does, God decides, and I still believe The Time will need me. When or where I have no Idea.
	Ny Suartama Drawing on his Buddhist Hindu background, Ny Suartama created series of serenely beautiful images of Buddha.
	Effi Thyar I was born in Sulawesi and had very traditional upbringing. My husband and I moved to Java 10 years ago and started a small business making beaded jewelry. My husband is very talented and has a lot of ideas, always creating new designs. I coordinate the production and try to find clients to sell to. We opened a small shop in a tourist area, but you can't always depend on tourists, so we're very happy to be able to supply Blue Moon because we know we can always count on them for orders.
	Yuyut Dalima I was born in Banyuwangi, East Java and went to school there, until I finished high school. My mother is a seamstress and works for herself at home. I learned sewing from her, as I was helping her when she was busy. My aunt saw my work and thought is was pretty good. She asked me to come and work with her making handbags. Handbags are more difficult to make than sewing clothes. The material is thicker and different textures are used together in one bag. I enjoy the challenge that this presents. We make many different kinds of handbags, so it's never boring.
	Nur Widaya I was born in 1983 on the island of Madura. My entire family makes beaded jewelry. Madura island is famous for the beaders and jewelry makers. But not silver or gold. Only beads, glass & ceramic beads. I've been making jewelry for a long time now, and I enjoy using the skills that I have learned, and always looking to do something new. I'm happy to find new materials to work with and it's nice to follow a family tradition. Tradition is very strong in Indonesia and we value it highly.
	Ilda Hariadi I was born in 1986 in Madura. I attended school in Madura until I was 16 years old. Then my whole family moved to Java, because the economic situation in Madura was very difficult. We continue our jewelry making business and enjoy better success because it's easier to find customers. It's also easier to find the materials we need for jewelry.
	Makmur Abadi I was born in 1980 in Madura. Like everyone in my family, I learned jewelry making when I was still young. I learned some metal work as well. This allows me to make jewelry that is more modern, not so traditional, so it is more attractive to my customers.
	Gusti Ayu Rukmiati My husband and I live in the 'bamboo village' of Belega - famous not only for bamboo products, but also all kinds of woven products made from palm leaf, rattan, grass fiber and vetiver. We started our business in 1994 making traditional woven baskets and bags that are used to carry food from the market, also flowers from bamboo leaf. Many tourists bought these items from us and slowly we started adding more designs. The bags became very popular so we started making more bags. My husband's family is large - 3 sisters and two brothers. Their husbands and wives and some of their children all work with us. We now also employ a lot of people in our village.
	Tommi Harwanto My family comes from Madura. Many years ago we moved to the island of Bali. We have always made jewelry, traditional beadwork and we continued our work in Bali. We learned new techniques and using new materials, such as resin inlays. The effect is beautiful and we are able to use small fragments of shells, which would otherwise be discarded.
	Aang Warsi Beadwork is a tradition in our family. All the women in my family learn beading at a young age. It's difficult work because it requires a lot of patience. What I most enjoy about my work is being able to work at home and the company of the other women as we work together.
	Nyoman Wirata Nyoman Wirata was born in 1963 to a family of farmers in the Balinese highlands. The challenge of becoming a designer came about then he got married and his family's economic situation was poor. Wirata did several jobs - being a driver and factory worker among them. He came up with the idea of designing new and original handbags that combined traditional look with contemporary materials. Thus a classic sling bag used by Buddhist monks became a fashionable tote in soft micro-suede or metalic pleather. Today Wirata's wife assists him with the accounting and he is able to offer employment to many people in his community.